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Former Veterans Affairs employee paid thousands for work he never did

A former worker cost taxpayers more than $100,000, said Wade Vlosich, director of the Oklahoma VA Hospital

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Updated: 2:02 PM EDT Jun 23, 2017

Former Veterans Affairs employee paid thousands for work he never did

A former worker cost taxpayers more than $100,000, said Wade Vlosich, director of the Oklahoma VA Hospital

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Updated: 2:02 PM EDT Jun 23, 2017

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WEBVTT $100,000.KOCO'S ZACH RAEL SHOWS US HOW HEGOT PAID FOR WORK HE NEVER DID.ZACH: THE FORMER EMPLOYEE WAS ARESEARCHER HERE AT THE V.A.HE WAS GETTING A PAYCHECK FORNEARLY TWO YEARS.THE PROBLEM, HE CLAIMED TO BEPHYSICALLY HERE AT THE HOSPITAL,WHEN IN ACTUALITY HE WAS ACROSSTHE COUNTRY AT JOHNS HOPKINSHOSPITAL IN BALTIMORE.>> BASICALLY HE WAS WORKING TWOJOBS AT THE SAME TIME.ZACH: WADE VLOSICH, THE DIRECTOROF THE OKLAHOMA V.A. HOSPITAL,SAYS HE WAS REVIEWING EMPLOYEEPAPERWORK WHEN SOMETHING CAUGHTHIS EYE.>> HE HAD CHECKED OFF THAT HEWAS WORKING IN AN UNSAFEENVIRONMENT.FOR ME, THAT RAISES A RED FLAGBECAUSE YOU DON'T EVER WANT YOUREMPLOYEES TO WORK IN AN UNSAFEENVIRONMENT.ZACH: HE DID SOME DIGGING ANDFOUND THE NOW FORMER EMPLOYEEWAS PAID $102,000 FOR WORK HENEVER DID.>> IT'S WASTING TAXPAYERDOLLARS.VLOSICH SAYS IT WAS PARTLYCARELESSNESS.A SUPERVISOR WHO IS NOW RETIREDWAS SIGNING OFF ON THE BOGUSTIME SHEETS.THE DIRECTOR HANDED THEINFORMATION OVER TO THE V.A.INSPECTOR GENERAL THEY GAVE IT TO THE U.S.ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, BUT THEYDECLINED TO PRESS CHARGES.>> OUR EMPLOYEES ARE SUPPOSED TOBE HERE, THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO BEWORKING FOR THE VETERANS.IF THEY ARE NOT WORKING FOR THEVETERANS, THEY AREN'T GOING TOBE WORKING FOR ME.

Former Veterans Affairs employee paid thousands for work he never did

A former worker cost taxpayers more than $100,000, said Wade Vlosich, director of the Oklahoma VA Hospital

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Updated: 2:02 PM EDT Jun 23, 2017

OKLAHOMA CITY —

The head of Oklahoma City’s VA is not mincing words.

He is calling out a former employee for behavior that he said cost taxpayers more than $100,000. The former employee was a researcher at the VA for nearly two years.

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He was collecting paychecks, but the problem was he claimed to be physically at the hospital when, in reality, he was across the country at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, the VA head said.

“Basically, he was working two jobs at the same time,” said Wade Vlosich, director of the Oklahoma VA Hospital.

Vlosich said he was reviewing employee paperwork when something caught his eye.

“He had checked off that he was working in an unsafe environment,” he said. “For me, that raises a red flag because you don’t ever want to your employee working in an unsafe environment.”

Vlosich did some digging and said he found the now former employee was paid $102,000 for work he never did.

“It’s wasting taxpayer dollars,” he said. Vlosich said it was just careless. A supervisor, who is now retired, was signing off on the bogus timesheets.

The director handed the information over to the VA inspector general, and they gave it to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. But they declined to press charges.

"Our employees are supposed to be here, they are supposed to be working for the veterans,” Vlosich said. “If they are not working for the veterans, they aren't going to be working for me."

In addition to being fired, the employee now has to pay back all the money, Vlosich said.